The Nigeria Democratic Congress, NDC, Plateau State chapter, has alleged that the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, is undermining Nigeria’s democracy through what it described as politically motivated court actions aimed at weakening opposition parties ahead of the 2027 general elections.

The Plateau State Chairman of the NDC, Solomon Ndam, made this allegation on Tuesday while speaking to reporters at the party’s state headquarters in Jos, the state capital.

Ndam insisted that the party remains legally registered by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, despite a recent Federal High Court judgment delivered in Lokoja, Kogi State.

According to him, the June 26, 2026 judgment was “illegal and organised,” alleging that it was procured by a group known as the Peace Movement Party, which he claimed is neither a registered political party nor a legally recognised organisation.

“Our party filed an appeal against the ruling on June 29, along with a stay of execution and injunction, which have been served on the INEC Chairman. The good news is that there is no court order directing the deregistration of the NDC,” he said.

He disclosed that INEC had already granted the party access to its candidate nomination portal, enabling it to begin uploading candidates in line with the commission’s timetable.

“Our presidential candidate was uploaded yesterday, June 29. We have until July 11 to upload National Assembly candidates and July 17 for governorship and State House of Assembly candidates,” Ndam stated.

Nigeria has launched its first public-facing Mental Health Policy Commitment Tracker, a digital platform designed to independently monitor implementation of the country’s mental health laws and policies amid concerns over slow progress in carrying out key reforms.

Developed by advocacy organisation Nigerian Mental Health (NMH), the tracker was officially launched virtually on Monday after an initial public unveiling in May.

NMH announced the launch in a statement sent to PREMIUM TIMES.

According to the organisation, the platform enables policymakers, researchers, civil society organisations and members of the public to monitor progress on commitments under the National Mental Health Act and related policies, including mental health financing, workforce development, treatment access and state-level reforms.

Why the tracker matters

Late President Muhammadu Buhari signed the National Mental Health Bill into law in January 2023 after two failed legislative attempts dating back to 2003. 

The legislation replaced the outdated Lunacy Act and marked a major shift in Nigeria’s approach to mental healthcare by strengthening the rights of people living with mental health conditions and providing for institutions such as a Department of Mental Health Services and a Mental Health Fund.

However, more than three years later, implementation of several provisions of the law has remained slow.

According to NMH, key institutional structures required under the Act, including the Department of Mental Health, have yet to be fully established. 

The organisation also said the federal government missed its December 2025 target to fully decriminalise attempted suicide, while implementation of the 2023 National Mental Health Policy and the country’s first Suicide Prevention Policy Framework has been limited.

It said these implementation gaps informed the development of the tracker, which is intended to independently verify whether mental health commitments are being translated into concrete action.

Speaking at the launch, NMH founder Chime Asonye said policy commitments should be accompanied by measurable implementation.

“Visibility must be matched by measurable execution,” he said, adding that the platform is designed to ensure commitments lead to tangible legal, institutional and service delivery outcomes.

According to NMH, the tracker serves as a public dashboard that aggregates government data, legislative updates, budget documents, verified stakeholder submissions and community-reported evidence.

Each policy commitment is assigned an implementation status, such as “Not Started, In Progress, Delayed or Completed”, allowing users to monitor progress across the federal and state levels.

The platform tracks regulatory milestones under the National Mental Health Act, as well as governance structures, budget allocations, workforce capacity, access to treatment, affordability and broader rights-based reforms.

Stakeholders back initiative

The launch brought together government officials, policymakers, researchers, civil society organisations, development partners, media practitioners and representatives of the creative industry.

Among the organisations supporting the initiative are Lagos Mind, Mind Over Matters NG, Stilt NG, Our Beta Life, the Mental Health Transformation Organisation (MHT) and Hevolve Foundation.

Mental health advocate and musician Hadiza Blell-Olo, popularly known as Di’ja, urged public figures to move beyond raising awareness by supporting partnerships that strengthen mental health reforms, noting that the tracker provides a framework for improving policy accountability.

Also speaking, the National Mental Health Coordinator at the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, Tunde Ojo, said independent accountability mechanisms can help strengthen implementation and improve service delivery.

NMH said the platform is open to policymakers, practitioners, researchers and members of the public, who can submit verified implementation updates and feedback to improve transparency and support mental health reforms across the country.